Packing method and apparatus



Sept. 14, 1937. w E; TAYLOR BACKING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed Aug. 8, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR A BY A Arrolgfilsvs Sgpt. 14, 1937. E. TAYLOR 2,092,786

, PACKING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed Aug.- s, 1955 2-Sheets -Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 14, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,092,786 PACKING METHOD AND APPARATUS William E.'Taylor, East Orange, N. 1., assignor to American Can Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation oi. New Jersey Application August 8, 1935, Serial No. 35,403

12 Claims.

simultaneously such severable solid products as I pineapples or the like.

Prior to my invention such severable solid products as pineapples have been cut or divided into individual pieces in the form of annular slices or cored circular discs and the latter, superimposed upon each other, packed into containers of diameters substantially equal to the diameters which appeal to the canner. as well as to the ultimate consumer.

An object of my invention is the provision of a new method of cutting or slicing of trimmed pineapple cylinders, whereby the cylinder is divided lengthwise into longitudinal sections or segments or fingers rather than into flat transverse new method obtains in one section a portion of the pineapple from one end to the other, in other words, secures a better averageof succulence or quality. It is well-known that the succulence of pineapple meat is best about .its transverse center and not as good at or towards the two ends. When pineapple is served at the table, under the old method of cutting and packing, one person usually obtains a piece of one quality and another a piece of another quality.

Another object of my invention is the provision of a novel method and machine for packing solid or substantially solid products, such as pineapples, into containers, whereby and wherein prepared unsevered units of the product, of a size and shape corresponding to the size and shape of the container into which they are to be packed, are received and are cut into a plurality ofas sembled individual portions simultaneously or substantially so with the filling or insertion of the assembled units into containers.

Another object is the provision of such an improved machine wherein empty container bodies, closed at one end and open at the .other, and prepared or partiallyprepared product units are of the individual'slices. This manner of packing I have discovered a new manner of cuttingdiscs, whereby the ultimate. consumer under my fed into the machine in a continuous procession in timed relation with each other and wherein the product units are cut and the bodies and cut units meet in proper alignment at a packing station where the cut units are inserted into the aligned containers and after packing are discharged to be hermetically sealed in another machine.

Another object of my invention is the provision of such a machine which may include a trimmer mechanism for completing the preparation of the product unit for packing into containers.

Still another object is the provision of a high speed automatic and compact machine of comparatively simple construction adapted for carrying out my new method of cutting pineapple cylinders into longitudinal segments and simultaneous with the cutting or substantially so inserting these individual portions in an assembled unit, identical in shape with the original uncut unit, into containers, thereby performing a plu rality of operations in a single machine and thus saving time, labor and floor space..

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent as it is better understood from the following description, which, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, disclose a preferred embodiment thereof.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of one form of apparatus embodying myinvention andfor carrying out my new method.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view, with parts broken away, illustrating the trimming station, the cutting station and the inserting or packing station of the apparatus.

An example of one of many possible embodiments of my invention is illustrated in the drawings, the machine or apparatus shown therein being especially adapted for the cutting and packing of pineapples which have been previously prepared or partially prepared for division into smaller portions and insertion into cylindrical sheet metal containers by having the outer scaly skin or rind of the pineapple trimmed orpare'd away, with the scaly end portions left .untrimmed and having the center or core removed.

Such smoothly trimmed and cored pineapple cylinders P, with untrimmed ends e are fed into the illustrated machine by being placed either by hand or automatically upon an endless belt con'veyer H ,which takes over rollers l2, only one of which is shown, which revolve in a clockwise direction, thus carrying the placed pineapple toward the machine between spaced parallel guide rails l3 and I. when a pineapple P, and e foremost,.arriv.es at the machine end of conveyer belt II, it drops by gravity into an opening Ii of a transfer chute l6, which has attached to one of its inner walls l1, which depends at right angles to the plane of the horizontal plane of the "conveyer Ii, an L-shaped shelf or twister mentarily arrested and caused to turn from a' plate l8, upon which the falling pineapple strikes with th edge of itslower untrlmmed end. When it thus strikes the shelf l8, the pineapple is movertical position to a horizontal position and then drops to the bottom of the chute which is formed by a plate l9, set at a slightly descending angle to the walls II "or the chute and which .extends beyond a suhstantially horizontal chute extension 2| and terminates in an. upwardly curled portion 22, which forms a rounded stop, preventing further movement of the pineapple.

when a pineapple P arrives at the stop 22, it

is in axial alignment with a pocket 23 of a pine- ,apple conveying turret 20, and with a feed plunger {having a plunger head. 24, actuated in timed relation with the other operating parts of the ma-. giine in any suitable manner by a plunger rod 1 The turret 29 is journaledupon a shaft 26,

having suitable bearings in frame parts of the machine (not shown) and is-intermittently rotated by any suitable power connection in a clockwise direction to bring its pockets 23 into succontainer body conveying scribed.-

by the stop [22,, an rived in alignment with the stopped pineapple and with the feed plunger head 24, the latter is cessive alignment with a pineapple P arrived. at the stop 22, with the feed plunger head 24',- and with a cutter plunger. packing plunger and a turret yet tobe de- After a pineapple cylinder P has been arrested a turret pocket23 has aractuated to push the pineapple oil. the plate I! and into the aligned turret pocket 23, so that the pineapple is centrally positioned in the pocket projecting from substantially equal to the thickness of the turret so that, as a turret pocket 23 with a pineapple therein passes the knives, the latter completely sever or pare oif the untrlmmed ends a of the pineapple, causing them to drop into a suitable receptacle at the bottom of the machine (not shown). As previous intimated, this trimming operation may be performed before the pineapples are fed into the machine, in which case the knives 21 would be dispensed with and the end trimming station would be an idle station at which no operation is performed.

Another step rotation of theturret 23, brings the pocketed andcompletely trimmed pineapple to a cutting station, where it dwells long enough to permit a radial cutter plunger to function.

i It is this radial cutter plimger which subdivides or cuts the cored and trimmed pineapple cylinder into the novel uniform, longitudinal segments or fingers previously referred to. It comprises a cylindrical plunger shaft or core 28, which has keyed or welded or otherwise secured thereto, at equally spaced intervals, a plurality of radial cutting blades 29. The number of blades used depends upon the number of individual segments intowhich it is desired to divide the pine-- apple.

The shaft 28 has .sliding bearing in two depending bearing plates or brackets 3|, supported by any suitable frame part of the machine (not shown). Each bracket 3i is provided with a cir cular bearing aperture 32, from which radiate equaly spaced slots 33, which provide clearance for the blades 29 and correspond in number, po-

sitionand size to the latter. The shaft '28 and the apertures 32 are in axial alignment with the core of a pocketed pineapple when the latter reaches and dwells at the cutter station. At this time the cutter plunger is in its outer postion, as viewed in Fig. 1, with the inner end of the shaft 28 on a level with the inner wall of the right hand bracket 3i, so as to clear the turret 20. A suitably timed mechanism (not shown) now actuates the plunger shaft28, pushing the shaft and the blades 29 inwardly through the apertures 32 and slots 33 respectively, until the blades 29 are positioned centrally of theopposed brackets 3|. This action cuts the pineapple cylinder contained in the turret pocket 23 into a plurality of uniform segmental portions or'fingers 34. To provide clearance for the knife blades 29, during this cutting operation, the cylindrical wall of the pocket 23 is provided-with slots 35, corresponding in number and location. to the blades 29. As soon as the pineapple cylinder has been thus cut into individual but still assembled segments 34, the plunger rod 28 and the blades 29 are quickly withdrawn to again bring them to the position shown in Fig. 1.

The. turret isagain moved forward a step to bring the now out and still pocketed pineapple to the packing station, where the assembled cut portions are inserted into an aligned container A container C, having a cylindrical body closed at the bottom by a double seamed end closure and having an open top surrounded by a flange, is brought to the packing station by means of a can conveying turret 30 already briefly referred to. The turret 38 is journalled upon a shaft 3F,

having suitable bearings in frame parts of the machine (not shown) and is intermittently rotated with said shaft by any suitable power connection in a counterclockwise direction. It is .provided with a plurality of container receiving and holding pockets 31, whichin number correspond .with the pockets 23 in the pineapple turret 20. Empty, bottomed and flanged containers 0 are successively guided into the pockets 31 by means of chute guide plates 38, one of which terminates adjacent the periphery of the turret -39, and the other is continued substantially half' way around the periphery of the turret to provide a container retaining wall 39 or arcuate guide plate spaced from the turret periphery a sufiir, cient distance to permit travel of the pocketed containerbndies but. close enough to hold them in their pockets 31, as they are slid along the guide wall 39. Being synchronized with the movement of the turret 20 and other operating.

parts and having overlapping relationship:witli the turret 28, the turret 30 delivers an empty container C at the packing station at the same time as the turret 20 delivers a. cut pineapple. When turret pockets 23 and 31 thus meet, the

open end of the pocketed container C faces the left hand side of the pocket 23 and the container and pineapple are in exact axial alignmentwith each other. It is when both turrets are temporarily at rest that a packing plunger comes into action.

The packing plunger comprises a plunger head 4|, secured upon the end of a plunger shaft 42. Like the feed plunger head 24, the head 4| is of the same cylindrical shape as the pocket 23, but is of greater length since it has to travel further.

When the turret pockets 23 and 31 come to rest in axial alignment with each other and also in alignment with the head 4|, suitable mechanism (not shown) moves the head 4| inwardly as viewed in Fig. 1, in contact with the right hand end of the pineapple cylinder, through the pocket 23, pushing the cut pineapple in anassembled body clear of the pocket 23 and into the open end of the aligned container body C, the outer diameter of the pineapple substantially coincidingwith or being a trifle less than the inner diameter of the container body.

Further step rotation of the turrets 20 and 30 brings the combined can body and cut pineapple past the end of the retaining wall 39, and the filled can body drops out of the pocket 31 and onto a conveyor belt 43, which delivers the filled can to a suitable closing machine or other desired place.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a new method which broadly comprises feeding prepared, solid, severable products and empty containers in timed relation to each other, cutting the solid product into longitudinal smaller portions, and substantially simultaneously packing the still assembled cut portions in the identical shape of the uncut product into aligned containers and I have also provided one of a variety of machines which carries out my new method.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction, and arrangement of parts of the apparatus mentioned herein and in the steps and their order of accomplishment of the process described herein, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing all ofits material advantages, the apparatus and process hereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim:

1. The method of packing pineapples or the like, which comprises, cutting trimmed and cored substantially whole pineapples longitudinally in-' to a plurality of smaller elongated portions each having a. longitudinal dimension equal to that of the whole pineapple and projecting said portions as a body into containers. V

2. The method of packing pineapples or the like, which comprises, cutting trimmed pineapples into a plurality of longitudinal segments and packing said segments into containers, said segments being confined in a cylindrical body during said cutting and packing.

3. The method of cutting and packing pineapples or thelike, which comprises, cutting trimmed and cored pineapples into a plurality of uniform longitudinal segments while preserving the original shape of the fruit and packing said out segments while so preserved and confined as a unit, into containers.

4. Themethod of cutting and packing pineapples or the like, which comprises, trimming the pineapple into cylindrical shape and coring the same, then cutting it longitudinally into a plurality of smaller portions while preserving the original shape of thefruit and then packing said out portions while so preserved and confined as a unit, into a container of substantially the size of said pineapple cylinder. 1

5. The method of cutting and packing pineapples or the like, which comprises, trimming the pineapple into substantially cylindrical shape, cutting the substantially whole pineapple longitudinally into a plurality of elongated portions each extending from end to end of the pineapple while preserving the original shape of the fruit and packing the cut portions while so preserved and confined as a unit, into a cylindrical container.

6. The method of packing pineapples or the like, which comprises, cutting a. cylindrically trimmed substantially whole pineapple into longitudinal portions each extending from end to end ing in combination, means for cutting the sub- I stantially whole pineapplev into a pluralityof elongated segments, means for feeding the pineapple towards said cutting means, means for conveying empty containers towards said cutting means and in timed relation with said feeding means, means for holding said segments in assembled relation, and means for projecting said out and assembled segments while confined in cylindrical form into said containers.

'9. A machine for cutting a severable product and packing it into containers, comprising a cutter mechanism for radially cutting said product into sections, a conveyor for feeding said product to said cutter mechanism, a conveyer for feeding empty containers towards said mechanism, and means for projecting said out sections while confined in cylindrical form into said containers.

10. A machine for cutting trimmed substantially whole pineapples and packing them into containers, comprising in combination, a conveyor for moving said pineapples to a cutting station, a cutter mechanism for cutting said pineapples longitudinally from end to end into elongated sections at said station, a packing station, a conveyor for moving empty containers to said packing station, and means for projecting said out sections while confined in cylindrical form into the containers at said packing station.

11. A machine for cutting and packing pineapples or the like, comprising in combination, a turret having a plurality of pockets for conveying substantially whole pineapples to a cutting station, a cutter mechanism associated with said station for cutting a presented pineapple into a plurality of sections, a turret having a plurality of pockets for conveying empty containers into alignment with cut pineapples in the pockets of said first turret, and means for proiec said out pineapples while confined in cylindrical ing substantially whole pineapples into alignment I with said mechanisms, a conveyor for alignment with 'said mechanisms, a conveyor for bringing empty containers into alignment with cut pineapples, and means for projecting the trimmedand cut pineapples while confined in cylindrical shape 5 into said containers. WILLIAM E. TAYLOR. 

